Search

In recent decades, hypoxic areas have rapidly expanded worldwide in estuaries and coastal zones. The Pearl River Estuary (PRE), one of China's largest estuaries, experiences frequent seasonal hypoxia due to intense human activities and eutrophication. However, the ecological effects of hypoxia in the PRE, particularly on fish communities, remain unclear. To explore these effects, we collected fish community and environmental data in July 2021 during the summer hypoxia development period. The results revealed that bottom‐layer dissolved oxygen (DO) in the PRE ranged from 0.08 to 5.71 mg/L, with extensive hypoxic zones (DO ≤ 2 mg/L) observed. Hypoxia has varied effects on fish community composition, distribution, species, and functional diversity in the PRE. A total of 104 fish species were collected in this study, with approximately 30 species (28.6%) exclusively found in hypoxic areas. Species responses to hypoxia varied: species such as Sardinella zunasi, Coilia mystus, and Nuchequula nuchalis were sensitive, while Decapterus maruadsi, Siganus fuscescens, and Lagocephalus spadiceus showed higher tolerance. Within the hypoxia area, dissolved oxygen was the main limiting factor for fish community diversity. Functional diversity (FDiv) decreased with higher dissolved oxygen levels, indicating a potential shift in the functional traits and ecological roles of fish species in response to changing oxygen conditions. Further analysis demonstrated that dissolved oxygen had a significantly stronger effect on fish community structure at hypoxic sites than in the whole PRE. Moreover, other environmental variables also had significant effects on the fish community structure and interacted with dissolved oxygen in the hypoxia area. These findings suggest that maintaining sufficient dissolved oxygen levels is essential for sustaining fish communities and ecosystem health in the PRE. This study provides novel insights into the effects of hypoxia on fish communities in estuarine ecosystems and has significant implications for the ecological health and management of the PRE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small RNA genes with important roles in cancer biology regulation. There are considerable studies regarding the roles of microRNA‐505‐3p (miR‐505‐3p) in cancer development and progression, but the function of miR‐505‐3p in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) has not been fully clarified. Comparative analysis of miRNA expression data set was used to select differentially expressed miRNAs. Quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction was applied to detect expression levels of RNAs, while western blot and immunofluorescence staining were performed to detect expression levels of proteins of interest. The motility of EOC cells was assessed by wound healing and transwell assays. The binding and regulating relationship between miRNA and its direct target gene was investigated by dual‐luciferase assay. Our results show that miR‐505‐3p was upregulated in recurrent EOC, which significantly inhibits EOC cell motility via modulating cell epithelial–mesenchymal transition. Furthermore, our results indicated that PEAK1 expression was inhibited by direct binding of miR‐505‐3p into its 3′‐URT in EOC cells. Importantly, knockdown of PEAK1 attenuated the effect of mi‐505‐3p inhibitor on EOC cell migration and invasion. In conclusion, our findings indicate that miRNA‐505‐3p inhibits EOC cell motility by targeting PEAK1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Pancreatic cancer (PC) has a poor prognosis and high mortality. Kruppel‐like factor 9 (KLF9), a transcription factor, is aberrantly expressed in various neoplasms. The current study sought to analyze the functional role of KLF9 in the proliferation, invasion, and migration of PC cells. Methods: The expression patterns of KLF9 and KIAA1522 in normal pancreatic cells (HPDE‐C7) and PC cells (Panc 03.27, BxPc3, SW1990) were determined by real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot assay. After treatment of KLF9 overexpression, proliferation, invasion, and migration were evaluated by cell counting kit‐8, 5‐ethynyl‐2′‐deoxyuridine staining, and Transwell assays. The binding of KLF9 to the KIAA1522 promoter was analyzed by dual‐luciferase assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation. The rescue experiment was conducted to analyze the role of KIAA1522. Results: KLF9 was downregulated, while KIAA1522 was upregulated in PC cells. KLF9 overexpression mitigated the proliferation, invasion, and migration of PC cells. Enrichment of KLF9 led to inhibition of the KIAA1522 promoter and repressed KIAA1522 expression. KIAA1522 overexpression neutralized the inhibitory role of KLF9 in PC cell functions. Conclusion: KLF9 is enriched in the KIAA1522 promoter and negatively regulates KIAA1522 expression, thereby mitigating the proliferation, invasion, and migration of PC cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐coverage mass spectrometry analysis of single‐cell metabolomics remains challenging due to the extremely low abundance and wide polarity of metabolites and ultra‐small volume in single cells. Herein, a novel concentric hybrid ionization source, nanoelectrospray ionization‐atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (nanoESI‐APCI), is ingeniously designed to detect polar and nonpolar metabolites simultaneously in single cells. The source is constructed by inserting a pulled glass capillary coaxially into a glass tube that acts as a dielectric barrier layer. Benefitting from the integrated advantages of nanoESI and APCI, its limit of detection is improved by one order of magnitude to 10 pg mL−1. After the operational parameter optimization, 254 metabolites detected in nanoESI‐APCI are tentatively identified from a single cell, and 82 more than those in nanoESI. The developed nanoESI‐APCI is successively applied to study the metabolic heterogeneity of human hepatocellular carcinoma tissue microenvironment united with laser capture microdissection (LCM), the discrimination of cancer cell types and subtypes, the metabolic perturbations to glucose starvation in MCF7 cells and the metabolic regulation of cancer stem cells. These results demonstrated that the nanoESI‐APCI not only opens a new avenue for high‐coverage and high‐sensitivity metabolomics analysis of single cell, but also facilitates spatially resolved metabolomics study coupled with LCM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MnOx samples were prepared and applied to the catalytic combustion of toluene. The results indicated that the KMnO4 content was important to the catalytic performance. Cat‐0.2 (0.2 g KMnO4) possessed the best catalytic performance, and more than 90% of toluene conversion was 255°C. Moderate amounts of KMnO4 facilitated the generation of mixed crystalline phases and structural defects, which led to the generation of more oxygen vacancies. In addition, the Cat‐0.2 possessed high contents of Oads/(Oads + Olatt) and Mn3+/(Mn3+ + Mn4+), which promoted the emergence‐annihilation cycle of oxygen vacancies and facilitated the reaction process of toluene. The reaction pathway of toluene was investigated via in situ DRIFTS, in which the by‐products included benzyl alcohol, benzaldehyde, benzoate, maleic anhydride, and short‐chain carbonate. Among them, benzoate was the main intermediate in the catalytic oxidation process of toluene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As an indicator of tumor invasiveness, microvascular invasion (MVI) is a crucial risk factor for postoperative relapse, metastasis, and unfavorable prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Nevertheless, the genetic mechanisms underlying MVI, particularly for Chinese patients, remain mostly uncharted. Methods: We applied deep targeted sequencing on 66 Chinese HCC samples. Focusing on the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) promoter (TERTp) and TP53 co‐mutation (TERTp+/TP53+) group, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to explore the potential molecular mechanisms of the TERTp+/TP53+ group on tumor progression and metastasis. Additionally, we evaluated the tumor immune microenvironment of the TERTp+/TP53+ group in HCC using multiplex immunofluorescence (mIF) staining. Results: Among the 66 HCC samples, the mutated genes that mostly appeared were TERT, TP53, and CTNNB1. Of note, we found 10 cases with TERTp+/TP53+, of which nine were MVI‐positive and one was MVI‐negative, and there was a co‐occurrence of TERTp and TP53 (p < 0.05). Survival analysis demonstrated that patients with the TERTp+/TP53+ group had lower the disease‐free survival (DFS) (p = 0.028). GSEA results indicated that telomere organization, telomere maintenance, DNA replication, positive regulation of cell cycle, and negative regulation of immune response were significantly enriched in the TERTp+/TP53+ group (all adjusted p‐values (p.adj) < 0.05). mIF revealed that the TERTp+/TP53+ group decreased CD8+ T cells infiltration (p = 0.25) and enhanced PDL1 expression (p = 0.55). Conclusions: TERTp+/TP53+ was significantly enriched in MVI‐positive patients, leading to poor prognosis for HCC patients by promoting proliferation of HCC cell and inhibiting infiltration of immune cell surrounding HCC. TERTp+/TP53+ can be utilized as a potential indicator for predicting MVI‐positive patients and poor prognosis, laying a preliminary foundation for further exploration of co‐mutation in HCC with MVI and clinical treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photodynamic therapy (PDT), as an emerging cancer treatment, requires the development of highly desirable photosensitizers (PSs) with integrated functional groups to achieve enhanced therapeutic efficacy. Coordination‐driven self‐assembly (CDSA) would provide an alternative approach for combining multiple PSs synergistically. Here, we demonstrate a simple yet powerful strategy of combining conventional chromophores (tetraphenylethylene, porphyrin, or Zn‐porphyrin) with pyridinium salt PSs together through condensation reactions, followed by CDSA to construct a series of novel metallo‐supramolecular PSs (S1–S3). The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is dramatically enhanced by the direct combination of two different PSs, and further reinforced in the subsequent ensembles. Among all the ensembles, S2 with two porphyrin cores shows the highest ROS generation efficiency, specific interactions with lysosome, and strong emission for probing cells. Moreover, the cellular and living experiments confirm that S2 has excellent PDT efficacy, biocompatibility, and biosafety. As such, this study will enable the development of more efficient PSs with potential clinical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Soybean is one of the most economically important crops worldwide and an important source of unsaturated fatty acids and protein for the human diet. Consumer demand for healthy fats and oils is increasing, and the global demand for vegetable oil is expected to double by 2050. Identification of key genes that regulate seed fatty acid content can facilitate molecular breeding of high‐quality soybean varieties with enhanced fatty acid profiles. Here, we analysed the genetic architecture underlying variations in soybean seed fatty acid content using 547 accessions, including mainly landraces and cultivars from northeastern China. Through fatty acid profiling, genome re‐sequencing, population genomics analyses, and GWAS, we identified a SEIPIN homologue at the FA9 locus as an important contributor to seed fatty acid content. Transgenic and multiomics analyses confirmed that FA9 was a key regulator of seed fatty acid content with pleiotropic effects on seed protein and seed size. We identified two major FA9 haplotypes in 1295 resequenced soybean accessions and assessed their phenotypic effects in a field planting of 424 accessions. Soybean accessions carrying FA9H2 had significantly higher total fatty acid contents and lower protein contents than those carrying FA9H1. FA9H2 was absent in wild soybeans but present in 13% of landraces and 26% of cultivars, suggesting that it may have been selected during soybean post‐domestication improvement. FA9 therefore represents a useful genetic resource for molecular breeding of high‐quality soybean varieties with specific seed storage profiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

2D perovskites have attracted wide attention for optoelectronic applications because of their unique layer structure and tunable outstanding optical/electrical properties. In addition, 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes possess large effective atomic number, high resistivity, high density as well as excellent stability, rendering it a promising material for X‐ray detection. Nevertheless, it is full of challenges to synthesize 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes by conventional inversion temperature crystallization (ITC) strategy due to the existence of Br‐ vacancies in the Cs3Bi2Br9 crystal nucleus. Herein, an Ag+ assisted ITC (SAITC) strategy to grow 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes is proposed. The synthesis mechanism revealed by both experiments and theoretical calculations can be mainly ascribed to the passivated Br− vacancies and enhanced structure stability by adding Ag+ which can effectively prevent the oxidation of 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes from growth of hybrid crystals. The synthesized high‐crystallinity 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes possess direct bandgap characteristic, and the mobility lifetime can reach 9.8 × 10−4 cm2 V−1. Excitingly, the fabricated device based on 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes demonstrates ultrahigh sensitivity of detecting X‐ray (1.9 CGyair−1cm−2) at very low driven voltage (0.5 V) due to the photoconductive gain mechanism. The 2D Cs3Bi2Br9 nanoflakes synthesized by SAITC method have great potential for developing highly sensitive optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a simulation test system for the working process of soft insulation is designed, using equivalent simulated ablation test methods combined with a CCD measuring system and micro electron microscope scanning technology, which can better describe the thermal properties and state of insulation after ablation. At the same time, a test plan for the opening characteristics of the insulator based on different ablation times and different opening structure sizes as the main influencing factors are designed. The experimental results show that the ablation test can well simulate the state of an actual pulse engine compartment after the ablation and the maximum relative error of the ablation rate can be controlled within 5 %. From the influence of ablation time on the opening characteristics of the insulator, it can be seen that the maximum axial deformation of the insulator is different from the relative value of the opening pressure. The radial deformation of the insulator is larger than that of the non‐ablated insulator and larger than the inner diameter of the insulator shell after ablation. From the influence of the size of the opening structure of the insulator (depth of weakening grooves) on the opening characteristics of the insulator, it can be seen that as the weakening groove depth of the compartment deepens, the original pressure change pattern disappears, and the opening pressure and opening time of the insulator decrease significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We performed a paired analysis to compare the therapeutic effect between the induction chemotherapy‐based organ‐preservation approach and immediate total laryngectomy in hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma patients requiring total laryngectomy. Methods: 351 patients who were treated with organ‐preservation approach were compared with 110 patients who were treated with total laryngectomy. The main measures and outcomes were progression‐free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and larynx function preservation survival (LFPS). Results: No statistical difference was observed for 3‐, 5‐, and 10‐year PFS and OS in two groups. In the organ‐preservation group, the 3‐, 5‐, and 10‐year LFPS was 30.7%, 23.3%, and 16.6%, respectively. The LFPS of Stage III > Stage IV, N0 > N1 > N2 > N3, T2 > T3 > T4, CR > PR > SD > PD patients (all p values <0.05). Conclusions: Survival outcomes did not significantly differ between the two groups. The organ‐preservation approach allowed more than 70% of the survivors to retain their larynx function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Photoperiod‐mediated flowering determines the phenological adaptability of crops including soybean (Glycine max). A genome‐wide association study (GWAS) identified a new flowering time locus, Time of flowering 13 (Tof13), which defined a gene encoding an AP2/ERF transcription factor. This new transcription factor, which we named TOE4b, is localized in the nucleus. TOE4b has been selected for soybean latitude adaptability. The existing natural variant TOE4bH4 was rare in wild soybean accessions but occurred more frequently in landraces and cultivars. Notably, TOE4bH4 improved high‐latitude adaptation of soybean to some extent. The gene‐edited TOE4b knockout mutant exhibited earlier flowering, conversely, TOE4b overexpression delayed flowering time. TOE4b is directly bound to the promoters and gene bodies of the key flowering integration factor genes FT2a and FT5a to inhibit their transcription. Importantly, TOE4b overexpression lines in field trials not only showed late flowering but also altered plant architecture, including shorter internode length, more internodes, more branches and pod number per plant, and finally boosted grain yield per plant by 60% in Guangzhou and 87% in Shijiazhuang. Our findings therefore identified TOE4b as a pleiotropic gene to increase yield potential per plant in soybean, and these results provide a promising option for breeding a soybean variety with an idealized plant architecture that promotes high yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Reports on the proteomic studies of ameloblastoma and other common odontogenic lesions are limited. We thus explored the differential proteins among ameloblastoma, odontogenic keratocyst, dentigerous cyst, and normal gingival tissue using proteomics and identified hub proteins involved in the local aggressiveness and recurrence of ameloblastoma. Methods: Samples were obtained from 14 patients with ameloblastoma, 6 with odontogenic keratocyst, 9 with a dentigerous cyst, and 5 with normal gingival tissue. Proteins were then extracted, purified, quantified, and analysed using Easy‐nLC chromatography and mass spectrometry. Further functional annotation and enrichment analyses were performed using Gene Ontology and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes on the target protein collection. Protein clustering and protein–protein interaction network analyses were used to screen the hub proteins. Proteins with significant interactions were screened according to their degree index. These results were verified by immunohistochemical staining. Proteins meeting the screening criteria of expression difference ploidy >1.2‐fold (upregulation and downregulation) and p < 0.05 were considered differential proteins. Results: In ameloblastoma, 808 differential proteins were upregulated and 505 were downregulated compared with those in odontogenic keratocyst; 309 were upregulated and 453 were downregulated compared with those in dentigerous cyst; and 2210 were upregulated and 829 were downregulated compared with those in normal gingival tissue. The three groups of differential proteins were associated with cellular exosomes, antigen binding, complement activation, human papillomavirus infection, focal adhesion, cell adhesion molecules, and metabolic pathways. Conclusion: CDH3 is associated with the local aggressiveness and recurrence of ameloblastoma and is a potential therapeutic target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Soybean (Glycine max) is a major source of protein and edible oil world‐wide and is cultivated in a wide range of latitudes. However, it is extremely sensitive to photoperiod, which influences flowering time, maturity, and yield, and severely limits soybean latitude adaptation.In this study, a genome‐wide association study (GWAS) identified a novel locus in accessions harboring the E1 allele, called Time of flowering 8 (Tof8), which promotes flowering and enhances adaptation to high latitude in cultivated soybean. Gene functional analyses showed that Tof8 is an ortholog of Arabidopsis FKF1.We identified two FKF1 homologs in the soybean genome. Both FKF1 homologs are genetically dependent on E1 by binding to E1 promoter to activate E1 transcription, thus repressing FLOWERING LOCUS T 2a (FT2a) and FT5a transcription, which modulate flowering and maturity through the E1 pathway.We also demonstrate that the natural allele FKF1bH3 facilitated adaptation of soybean to high‐latitude environments and was selected during domestication and improvement, leading to its rapid expansion in cultivated soybean. These findings provide novel insights into the roles of FKF1 in controlling flowering time and maturity in soybean and offer new means to fine‐tune adaptation to high latitudes and increase grain yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New Findings: What is the central question of this study?Hypoxaemia can lead to increased postoperative mortality in patients: what are the independent risk factors for severe hypoxaemia after acute Stanford type A aortic dissection?What is the main finding and its importance?Severe postoperative hypoxaemia was found in 36.4% of patients, and it was determined that high preoperative bradykinin levels and increased BMI were independent predictors of severe postoperative hypoxaemia in patients with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection. For obese patients with high preoperative bradykinin levels, more attention should be paid to preventing severe postoperative hypoxaemia. Severe hypoxaemia after cardiac surgery is associated with serious complications and a high risk of mortality. The purpose of this study is to investigate the independent risk factors of severe postoperative hypoxaemia in patients with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection. We collected 77 patients with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection who underwent surgical treatment. The primary outcome was severe postoperative hypoxaemia (PaO2/FiO2 ≤ 100 mmHg), and a multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the independent predictors of risk for this. A mixed‐effects analysis of variance model and a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were generated to evaluate the predictive probabilities of risk factors for severe postoperative hypoxaemia. A total of 36.4% of patients developed severe postoperative hypoxaemia. The multivariate logistic regression analysis identified high preoperative bradykinin level (odds ratio (OR) = 55.918, P < 0.001) and increased body mass index (BMI; OR = 1.292, P = 0.032) as independent predictors of severe postoperative hypoxaemia in patients with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection. The mixed‐effect analysis of variance model and ROC curve indicated that high preoperative bradykinin level and BMI were significant predictors of severe postoperative hypoxaemia (area under the ROC curve = 0.834 and 0.764, respectively). High preoperative bradykinin levels and obesity were independent risk factors for severe postoperative hypoxaemia in patients with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection. For obese patients with high levels of bradykinin before surgery, clinicians should actively take measures to block bradykinin‐mediated inflammatory reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Flowering time is one of important agronomic traits determining the crop yield and affected by high temperature. When facing high ambient temperature, plants often initiate early flowering as an adaptive strategy to escape the stress and ensure successful reproduction. However, here we find opposing ways in the short‐day crop soybean to respond to different levels of high temperatures, in which flowering accelerates when temperature changes from 25 to 30 °C, but delays when temperature reaches 35 °C under short day. phyA‐E1, possibly photoperiodic pathway, is crucial for 35 °C‐mediated late flowering, however, does not contribute to promoting flowering at 30 °C. 30 °C‐induced up‐regulation of FT2a and FT5a leads to early flowering, independent of E1. Therefore, distinct responsive mechanisms are adopted by soybean when facing different levels of high temperatures for successful flowering and reproduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chiral imidodiphosphates (IDPs) have emerged as strong Brønsted acid catalysts for many enantioselective processes. However, the dynamic transformation between O,O‐syn and O,O‐anti conformers typically results in low enantioselectivity. Here we demonstrate that topologies of metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs) can be exploited to control IDP conformations and local chiral microenvironments for enantioselective catalysis. Two porous Dy‐MOFs with different topologies are obtained from an enantiopure 1,1′‐biphenol IDP‐based tetracarboxylate ligand. While the ligand adopts a 4‐ or 3‐connected (c) binding mode, all IDPs are rigidified to get only a single O,O‐syn conformation and display greatly enhanced Brønsted acidity relative to the free IDP. The MOF with the 4‐c IDP that has a relatively less compact shape than the 3‐c IDP can be an efficient and recyclable heterogeneous Brønsted acid catalysing the challenging asymmetric O,O‐acetalization reaction with up to 96 % enantiomeric excess. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soybean (Glycine max L.) is a typical photoperiod‐sensitive crop, such that photoperiod determines its flowering time, maturity, grain yield, and phenological adaptability. During evolution, the soybean genome has undergone two duplication events, resulting in about 75% of all genes being represented by multiple copies, which is associated with rampant gene redundancy. Among duplicated genes, the important soybean maturity gene E2 has two homologs, E2‐Like a (E2La) and E2‐Like b (E2Lb), which encode orthologs of Arabidopsis GIGANTEA (GI). Although E2 was cloned a decade ago, we still know very little about its contribution to flowering time and even less about the function of its homologs. Here, we generated single and double mutants in E2, E2La, and E2Lb by genome editing and determined that E2 plays major roles in the regulation of flowering time and yield, with the two E2 homologs depending on E2 function. At high latitude regions, e2 single mutants showed earlier flowering and high grain yield. Remarkably, in terms of genetic relationship, genes from the legume‐specific transcription factor family E1 were epistatic to E2. We established that E2 and E2‐like proteins form homodimers or heterodimers to regulate the transcription of E1 family genes, with the homodimer exerting a greater function than the heterodimers. In addition, we established that the H3 haplotype of E2 is the ancestral allele and is mainly restricted to low latitude regions, from which the loss‐of‐function alleles of the H1 and H2 haplotypes were derived. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the function of the H3 allele is stronger than that of the H1 haplotype in the regulation of flowering time, which has not been shown before. Our findings provide excellent allelic combinations for classical breeding and targeted gene disruption or editing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dear Editor, Fibrosis is characterized by fibroblast dysfunction and excessive deposition of cell-matrix that affect the normal functioning of the original tissue or organ.[1] The pathogenesis of keloids is complex and remains elusive. Fibroblasts interacted with endothelial cells via I ACKR1 i , while multiple chemokines ( I CXCL2 i , I CCL3L3 i ) secreted by myeloid cells interacted with I DPP4 i in fibroblasts (Figure 4D). (F) Interaction of macrophages and fibroblasts based on molecular patterns indicated that macrophages interact with fibroblasts via SPP1. CTHRC1+ fibroblasts are stimulated by macrophage-secreted SPP1 to induce excessive collagen deposition in keloids. [Extracted from the article]

Salt stress and flowering time are major factors limiting geographic adaptation and yield productivity in soybean (Glycine max). Although improving crop salt tolerance and latitude adaptation are essential for efficient agricultural production, whether and how these two traits are integrated remains largely unknown. Here, we used a genome‐wide association study to identify a major salt‐tolerance locus controlled by E2, an ortholog of Arabidopsis thaliana GIGANTEA (GI). Loss of E2 function not only shortened flowering time and maturity, but also enhanced salt‐tolerance in soybean. E2 delayed soybean flowering by enhancing the transcription of the core flowering suppressor gene E1, thereby repressing Flowering Locus T (FT) expression. An E2 knockout mutant e2CR displayed reduced accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the response to salt stress by releasing peroxidase, which functions in ROS scavenging to avoid cytotoxicity. Evolutionary and population genetic analyses also suggested that loss‐of‐function e2 alleles have been artificially selected during breeding for soybean adaptation to high‐latitude regions with greater salt stress. Our findings provide insights into the coupled selection for adaptation to both latitude and salt stress in soybean; and offer an ideal target for molecular breeding of early‐maturing and salt‐tolerant cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hair follicles (HFs) play an essential role in sustaining a persistent hair growth cycle. The activities of dermal papilla cells (DPCs) and other cells inside the HFs dominate the process of hair growth. However, the detailed molecular mechanisms remain largely unknown. To investigate the role of citric acid (CA) metabolism in hair growth, we evaluated the effect of citrate synthase (CS)–CA axis on hair growth in vivo and in vitro. Mice hair growth was evaluated by morphology and histopathology analysis. The inflammation and apoptosis levels in mice, HFs, and DPCs were detected by immunohistofluorescence, qPCR, ELISA, western blot, and TUNEL assay. Cell proliferation, cell cycle, and cell apoptosis in DPCs were analyzed by real‐time cell analysis and flow cytometer. We found that subcutaneous injection of CA in mice caused significant hair growth suppression, skin lesion, inflammatory response, cell apoptosis, and promotion of catagen entry, compared with the saline control, by activating p‐p65 and apoptosis signaling in an NLRP3‐dependent manner. In cultured human HFs, CA attenuated the hair shaft production and accelerated HF catagen entry by regulating the above‐mentioned pathways. Additionally, CA hampered the proliferation rate of DPCs via inducing cell apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Considering that citrate synthase (CS) is responsible for CA production and is a rate‐limiting enzyme of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, we also investigated the role of CS in CA metabolism and hair growth. As expected, knockdown of CS reduced CA production and reversed CA‐induced hair growth inhibition, anagen shrink, inflammation, and apoptosis both in HFs and DPCs. Our experiments demonstrated that CS–CA axis serves as an important mediator and might be a potential therapeutic target in hair growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the exciton dynamics due to the electron delocalization in InP‐based quantum dot light‐emitting diodes (QLEDs), the exciton dynamics are systematically controlled in InP‐based QLEDs through varying the shell thicknesses of InP/ZnSe quantum dots (QDs) and the effective electrical field (E‐field) across the QDs. It is found that the field‐independent energy transfer is effectively suppressed as the shell thickness increases. However, InP/ZnSe QDs with thicker shells only have limited benefit for suppressing the exciton transfer due to field‐enhanced electron delocalization in films on electron transport layers or working devices. The field‐assisted exciton transfer is mainly driven by the large E‐field and field‐enhanced electron delocalization in InP/ZnSe QDs. External quantum efficiency of 22.56% is achieved in InP‐based QLEDs by reducing the effective E‐field (at 2 V bias). The breakthrough luminance of 136 090 cd/m−2 is achieved at a large bias of 7.2 V, due to the suppression of field‐enhanced electron delocalization by the ultra‐thick shell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A solid rocket motor is in storage for most of its life cycle, and propellant creep occurs subjected to gravity load. To analyse the creep characteristics of HTPB propellant during long‐term storage, MSC Marc is used to calculate the maximum von Mises stress of the motor under horizontal and vertical storage conditions. Based on the numerical results, the short‐term reciprocating creep test and long‐term creep test are designed and carried out. The results illustrate that the process of propellant creep from deformation to final failure can be divided into four stages: instantaneous deformation stage, attenuation creep stage, steady‐state creep stage and accelerated creep failure stage. When the creep stress level is less than 0.1 MPa, the creep characteristics tend to be stable. When the creep strain exceeds a certain critical value, the propellant will enter the steady‐state creep stage. The damage caused by creep rises with the increase of creep time and stress. When the maximum creep strain is less than 10 %, the creep damage can be fully recovered. The splicing curve of short‐term creep test data is in good agreement with that of long‐term creep test data. A mechanical long‐term creep test method is provided, and the parameters of the modified Burgers model are fitted. The text methods and conclusions can provide a reference for the evaluation of structural integrity and storage life of solid motor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Renal fibrosis is a serious condition that results in the development of chronic kidney diseases. The MEN1 gene is an epigenetic regulator that encodes the menin protein and its role in kidney tissue remains unclear. Methods: Kidney histology was examined on paraffin sections stained with hematoxylin‐eosin staining. Masson's trichrome staining and Sirius red staining were used to analyze renal fibrosis. Gene and protein expression were determined by quantitative real‐time PCR (qPCR) and Western blot, respectively. Immunohistochemistry staining in the kidney tissues from mice or patients was used to evaluate protein levels. Flow cytometry was used to analyze the cell cycle distributions and apoptosis. RNA‐sequencing was performed for differential expression genes in the kidney tissues of the Men1f/f and Men1∆/∆ mice. Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP‐seq) was carried out for identification of menin‐ and H3K4me3‐enriched regions within the whole genome in the mouse kidney tissue. ChIP‐qPCR assays were performed for occupancy of menin and H3K4me3 at the gene promoter regions. Luciferase reporter assay was used to detect the promoter activity. The exacerbated unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) models in the Men1f/f and Men1∆/∆ mice were used to assess the pharmacological effects of rh‐HGF on renal fibrosis. Results: The expression of MEN1 is reduce in kidney tissues of fibrotic mouse and human diabetic patients and treatment with fibrotic factor results in the downregulation of MEN1 expression in renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs). Disruption of MEN1 in RTECs leads to high expression of α‐SMA and Collagen 1, whereas MEN1 overexpression restrains epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) induced by TGF‐β treatment. Conditional knockout of MEN1 resulted in chronic renal fibrosis and UUO‐induced tubulointerstitial fibrosis (TIF), which is associated with an increased induction of EMT, G2/M arrest and JNK signaling. Mechanistically, menin recruits and increases H3K4me3 at the promoter regions of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 5 (Adamts5) genes and enhances their transcriptional activation. In the UUO mice model, exogenous HGF restored the expression of Adamts5 and ameliorated renal fibrosis induced by Men1 deficiency. Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that MEN1 is an essential antifibrotic factor in renal fibrogenesis and could be a potential target for antifibrotic therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Azide polyether propellant is a new type of high‐energy solid propellant with broad application prospects. In order to measure the mechanical properties of azide propellant, tensile tests of propellant under different loading conditions were carried out, and compression test pieces of azide propellant of different sizes were designed and tested, and the tensile and compressive stress‐strain curves of azide propellant were obtained. Through qualitative and quantitative analysis, the influence law of loading rate and temperature on the mechanical properties of propellant was obtained, the linear variation law of mechanical properties parameters with logarithmic strain rate was analyzed, and the mathematical relationship between propellant stiffness and strength was found. The master curve of the compressive initial modulus and maximum strength of the azide propellant was drawn. The test results can provide theoretical basis for the performance research of azide propellant and the nondestructive testing of this type of engine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐performance solar‐blind photodetectors are widely studied due to their unique significance in military and industrial applications. Yet the rational molecular design for materials to possess strong absorption in solar‐blind region is rarely addressed. Here, an organic solar‐blind photodetector is reported by designing a novel asymmetric molecule integrated strong solar‐blind absorption with high charge transport property. Such alkyl substituted [1]benzothieno[3,2‐b][1]‐benzothiophene (BTBT) derivatives Cn‐BTBTN (n = 6, 8, and 10) can be easily assembled into 2D molecular crystals and perform high mobility up to 3.28 cm2 V−1s−1, which is two orders of magnitude higher than the non‐substituted core BTBTN. Cn‐BTBTNs also exhibit dramatically higher thermal stability than the symmetric alkyl substituted C8‐BTBT. Moreover, C10‐BTBTN films with the highest mobility and strongest solar‐blind absorption among the Cn‐BTBTNs are applied for solar‐blind photodetectors, which reveal record‐high photosensitivity and detectivity up to 1.60 × 107 and 7.70 × 1014 Jones. Photodetector arrays and flexible devices are also successfully fabricated. The design strategy can provide guidelines for developing materials featuring high thermal stability and stimulating such materials in solar‐blind photodetector application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research Summary: Previous studies on initial public offerings (IPOs) in mature stock markets have documented that high‐reputation underwriters primarily work with high‐quality firms and vice versa—that is, they are paired through a quality‐matching mechanism. We propose that in a nascent stock market, a pricing mechanism may also play a role, through which pricing (the underwriting fee) sets the pairing. We examine these two mechanisms in the context of China's ChiNext stock exchange, which was launched in 2009 and experienced dramatic regulatory improvements in 2012–2013. With data on IPOs in 2009–2017, we find evidence to support the pricing mechanism's effect before the regulatory improvements and the quality‐matching mechanism's effect after the improvements. We contribute to the literature by developing an evolutionary view on the pairing mechanisms between important capital market participants. Managerial Summary: In a mature stock market, underwriter reputation signals the underlying quality of initial public offering (IPO) firms to external investors because high‐reputation underwriters primarily work with high‐quality IPO firms and vice versa. We find that in a nascent stock market before the market experiences regulatory improvements, underwriters and IPO firms are paired through a pricing mechanism. That is, underwriters with higher reputation charge higher underwriting fees, and IPO firms with lower quality pay higher fees. Since the pricing mechanism rather than the quality‐matching mechanism sets the pairing, underwriter reputation does not have a signaling effect. Instead, we find that higher underwriting fees signal lower quality of IPO firms. Our findings shed important insights on how market participants are paired in other nascent markets, nascent technology fields and industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hemibiotrophic pathogen Bipolaris sorokiniana causes root rot, leaf blotching, and black embryos in wheat and barley worldwide, resulting in significant yield and quality reductions. However, the mechanism underlying the host–pathogen interactions between B. sorokiniana and wheat or barley remains unknown. The B. sorokiniana genome encodes a large number of uncharacterized putative effector proteins. In this study, we identified a putative secreted protein, CsSp1, with a classic N‐terminal signal peptide, that is induced during early infection. A split‐marker approach was used to knock out CsSP1 in the Lankao 9‐3 strain. Compared with the wild type, the deletion mutant ∆Cssp1 displayed less radial growth on potato dextrose agar plates and produced fewer spores, and complementary transformation completely restored the phenotype of the deletion mutant to that of the wild type. The pathogenicity of the deletion mutant in wheat was attenuated even though appressoria still penetrated the host. Additionally, the infectious hyphae in the deletion mutant became swollen and exhibited reduced growth in plant cells. The signal peptide of CsSp1 was functionally verified through a yeast YTK12 secretion system. Transient expression of CsSp1 in Nicotiana benthamiana inhibited lesion formation caused by Phytophthora capsici. Moreover, CsSp1 localized in the nucleus and cytoplasm of plant cells. In B. sorokiniana‐infected wheat leaves, the salicylic acid‐regulated genes TaPAL, TaPR1, and TaPR2 were down‐regulated in the ∆Cssp1 strain compared with the wild‐type strain under the same conditions. Therefore, CsSp1 is a virulence effector and is involved in triggering host immunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overall dissection and in situ sampling are the most direct and reliable ways to obtain the storage performance degradation of solid rocket motors. However, mechanical cutting poses serious safety risks because grains are regarded as a chemical product. Ultrasonic vibration sawing of diamond wires can be performed in a wide variety of materials. Moreover, this mechanism has a low cutting force and a high cutting precision, produces narrow slits and leads to a low rise in cutting temperature. Thus, this method has application prospects in comprehensive engine dissection. In this work, the main material physical characteristics of the chamber of a nonmetallic case motor were analysed. A four‐parameter orthogonal experimental study with an infrared temperature measurement as the control parameter was conducted. The safety parameters during the shell cutting were preliminary determined. The cutting temperature inside the solid propellant block was measured with an embedded microthermocouple. The cutting process parameters were then checked. The safety of the method was further verified by simulating the motor chamber via an integrated sawing test. Results showed that the ultrasonic vibration sawing method has the advantages of fast cutting speed, low increase in cutting temperature, produces a flat cutting surface and does not lead to stratification in the cutting interface when dissecting the chamber of the nonmetallic case motor. Moreover, this method has potential applications in the engineering practice of storage life research in solid rocket motors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrauterine infection would harm a developing embryo/fetus, thereby increasing the risk of developmental malformation. But, whether or not the infection‐induced inflammation affects neural crest development still remains obscure. In this study, we employed meta‐analysis to demonstrate the potential correlation between infection‐induced inflammation and craniofacial anomalies, which was usually derived from the problems in neural crest cell development. The correlation was further verified by inflammatory cytokine release and the activation of nuclear factor kappa‐light‐chain enhancer of activated B cells signaling in lipopolysaccharide‐treated HH10 chicken embryos. In such an inflammatory condition, AP‐2α‐ and Pax7‐labeled pre‐migratory and migratory neural crest cells in HH10 chicken embryos were significantly less than the ones in control. The bioinformatics analysis of RNA‐seq data demonstrated that the principal differential gene expression occurred in transforming growth factor‐beta (TGF‐β) signaling pathway, which was confirmed by the subsequent experimental results of quantitative PCR and immunofluorescent staining. Under this inflammatory circumstance, whole‐mount in situ hybridization, immunofluorescence, and quantitative PCR showed the gene expression changes of key EMT‐related transcription factors including upregulated Msx1, downregulated Slug, and FoxD3, as well as adhesion molecules and extracellular matrix protein including upregulated Cadherrin6B, E‐cadherin, N‐cadherin, and Laminin at the dorsal portion of neural tube of HH10 chicken embryos. Meanwhile, the bioinformatics analysis of RNA‐seq data also manifested the differential gene expressions relevant to cell proliferation, which was confirmed by proliferating cell nuclear antigen Western blot data and co‐immunofluorescence staining of human natural killer‐1 and phosphorylated histone H3. In brief, this study revealed for the first time that the double‐edged sword role of TGF‐β signaling pathway between intrauterine inflammation (protective role) and cranial neural crest development (harmful role). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) is having a dramatic effect on the mental health of healthcare workers (HCWs). Upon the emergence of the COVID‐19 pandemic, the Chinese government dispatched about 42 000 HCWs to Wuhan City and Hubei Province to fight this pandemic. This study briefly examines front‐line nurses who experienced burnout, with the main objective of investigating the mediating roles of positive and negative affect in the relationship between resilience and burnout in Wuhan hospitals at the peak of the COVID‐19 pandemic. A total of 180 front‐line nurses voluntarily participated via a social media group. They completed the online questionnaires, including the Maslach Burnout Inventory‐General Survey (MBI‐GS), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD‐RISC), demographics, and work‐related characteristics. Structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis was used to examine the mediating effect of positive and negative affect on the relationship between resilience and burnout. The total prevalence of burnout was 51.7%, of which 15.0% were severe burnout. These preliminary results revealed that positive and negative affect fully mediated the effects of resilience on burnout, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment of front‐line nurses. It is necessary to know the impact of resilience on HCWs with burnout through the positive and negative affect of individual backgrounds and situations, and how policymakers can deploy resilience interventions to support front‐line HCWs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flowering time and stem growth habit determine inflorescence architecture in soybean, which in turn influences seed yield. Dt1, a homolog of Arabidopsis TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1), is a major controller of stem growth habit, but its underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that Dt1 affects node number and plant height, as well as flowering time, in soybean under long‐day conditions. The bZIP transcription factor FDc1 physically interacts with Dt1, and the FDc1‐Dt1 complex directly represses the expression of APETALA1 (AP1). We propose that FT5a inhibits Dt1 activity via a competitive interaction with FDc1 and directly upregulates AP1. Moreover, AP1 represses Dt1 expression by directly binding to the Dt1 promoter, suggesting that AP1 and Dt1 form a suppressive regulatory feedback loop to determine the fate of the shoot apical meristem. These findings provide novel insights into the roles of Dt1 and FT5a in controlling the stem growth habit and flowering time in soybean, which determine the adaptability and grain yield of this important crop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soybean (Glycine max) is an important legume crop that was domesticated in temperate regions. Soybean varieties from these regions generally mature early and exhibit extremely low yield when grown under inductive short‐day (SD) conditions at low latitudes. The long‐juvenile (LJ) trait, which is characterized by delayed flowering and maturity, and improved yield under SD conditions, allowed the cultivation of soybean to expand to lower latitudes. Two major loci control the LJ trait: J and E6. In the current study, positional cloning, sequence analysis, and transgenic complementation confirmed that E6 is a novel allele of J, the ortholog of Arabidopsis thaliana EARLY FLOWERING 3 (ELF3). The mutant allele e6PG, which carries a Ty1/Copia‐like retrotransposon insertion, does not suppress the legume‐specific flowering repressor E1, allowing E1 to inhibit Flowering Locus T (FT) expression and thus delaying flowering and increasing yields under SD conditions. The e6PG allele is a rare allele that has not been incorporated into modern breeding programs. The dysfunction of J might have greatly facilitated the adaptation of soybean to low latitudes. Our findings increase our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the LJ trait and provide valuable resources for soybean breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluate the substitution effect between formal and informal institutions based on a natural experiment in China, i.e., the targeted reserve requirement ratio cut (TRRRC) policy. TRRRC creates a large and persistent discontinuity affecting loan availability for small and micro‐enterprises (SMEs) with sales below specific cut‐offs. Using the regression discontinuity design, we show that the trade credit of SMEs is significantly lower for firms with sales below the cut‐offs, indicating a substitution effect of banking loan on trade credit. Our findings are more pronounced for firms with poor product market performance, weak mortgage capability, young age, and poor financial environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The precise regulation of asymmetric cell division (ACD) is essential for plant organogenesis. In Arabidopsis roots, SHORT‐ROOT (SHR) functions to promote periclinal division in cortex/endodermis initials, which generate the ground tissue patterning. Although multiple downstream transcription factors and interplaying hormone pathways have been reported, the cellular mechanism that affects SHR‐mediated periclinal division remains largely unclear.Here, we found that SHR can substantially elevate reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in Arabidopsis roots by activating respiratory burst oxidase homologs (RBOHs). Among the ROS products, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) rather than superoxide (O2−) was shown to play a critical role in SHR‐mediated periclinal division. Scavenging H2O2 could markedly impair the ability of SHR to induce periclinal division.We also show that salicylic acid (SA) can promote H2O2 production by repressing CAT expression, which greatly increased periclinal division in root endodermis. As a result, middle cortex was more frequently formed in the endodermis of snc1, a mutant with accumulated endogenous SA and H2O2. In addition to RBOHs, SHR also activated the SA pathway, which might contribute to the elevated H2O2 level induced by SHR.Thus, our data suggest a mechanism by which SHR creates the optimal micro‐environment for periclinal division by maintaining ROS homeostasis in Arabidopsis roots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flowering time and plant height are key agronomic traits that directly affect soybean (Glycine max) yield. APETALA1 (AP1) functions as a class A gene in the ABCE model for floral organ development, helping to specify carpel, stamen, petal, and sepal identities. There are four AP1 homologs in soybean, all of which are mainly expressed in the shoot apex. Here, we used clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) – CRISPR‐associated protein 9 technology to generate a homozygous quadruple mutant, gmap1, with loss‐of‐function mutations in all four GmAP1 genes. Under short‐day (SD) conditions, the gmap1 quadruple mutant exhibited delayed flowering, changes in flower morphology, and increased node number and internode length, resulting in plants that were taller than the wild type. Conversely, overexpression of GmAP1a resulted in early flowering and reduced plant height compared to the wild type under SD conditions. The gmap1 mutant and the overexpression lines also exhibited altered expression of several genes related to flowering and gibberellic acid metabolism, thereby providing insight into the role of GmAP1 in the regulatory networks controlling flowering time and plant height in soybean. Increased node number is the trait with the most promise for enhancing soybean pod number and grain yield. Therefore, the mutant alleles of the four AP1 homologs described here will be invaluable for molecular breeding of improved soybean yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monolayer molecular crystals (MMC) of NDI3HU‐DTYM2 are grown on flexible substrates for constructing organic field effect transistors (OFET) as sensors to detect dimethoate. Benefitting from the ultra‐thin thickness of monolayer and highly crystalline nature, the MMC‐OFET based dimethoate sensors exhibit an ultrahigh detection limit of 0.60 ppb. The devices also show excellent conformal ability on various curved surfaces with negligible performance degradation. This work offers a promising flexible candidate for the fast and efficient detection of organophosphorus pesticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Suberin lamellae, which provide a hydrophobic protective barrier against biotic and abiotic stresses, are widely deposited in various cell types during plant development and in response to stress. However, it remains unclear how developmental programs interact with stress responses to direct the precise spatiotemporal pattern of suberin deposition. In this study, we found that SHORT‐ROOT (SHR), together with its downstream factor MYB36, guided suberization specifically in the root endodermis. Despite a partial dependence on abscisic acid (ABA), the suberization mediated by SHR and MYB36 appeared to derive from a slow readout of developmental programs, which was in contrast to the rapid but transient suberization induced by ABA. Furthermore, we found the MYB39 transcription factor functioned as a common downstream hub of the SHR/MYB36 pathway and the ABA‐triggered response. MYB39 could directly bind to the FAR5 (alcohol‐forming fatty acyl‐coenzyme A reductase) promoter to activate its expression. In addition, overexpression of MYB39 dramatically increased the amount of suberization in Arabidopsis roots. Our results provide important insights into the interaction between developmental programs and environmental stimuli in root suberization in Arabidopsis. Significance Statement: Suberin lamella serves as a protection against biotic and abiotic stresses in plants. Here we show that SHORT‐ROOT mediates a developmental regulatory network that interplays with stress‐induced hormone abscisic acid to coordinate suberization in Arabidopsis roots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many sophisticated chemical and physical properties of porous materials strongly rely on the presence of the metal ions within the structures. Whereas homogeneous distribution of metals is conveniently realized in metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), the limited stability potentially restricts their practical implementation. From that perspective, the development of metal–covalent organic frameworks (MCOFs) may address these shortcomings by incorporating active metal species atop highly stable COF backbones. This Minireview highlights examples of MCOFs that tackle important issues from their design, synthesis, characterization to cutting‐edge applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perovskite light emitting devices have been expected to be utilized in the field of displays. In this work, a stable FA0.3Cs0.7PbBr3 perovskite quantum dot ink with optimized octane:dodecane cosolvent is obtained by introducing a trace amount of long‐chain ligand of oleylamine (OAm) during the quantum dot purification process. A green electroluminescent matrix device with 120 pixels per inch (PPI) is realized from the ink by using an inkjet printing technique, exhibiting a luminance of 1233 cd m−2, a peak current efficiency of 10.3 cd A−1, and an external quantum efficiency of 2.8%. The results may suggest a possibility of making perovskite quantum dot displays by using the inkjet printing technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sensitivity of conventional thin‐film OFET‐based sensors is limited by the diffusion of analytes through bulk films and remains the central challenge in sensing technology. Now, for the first time, an ultrasensitive (sub‐ppb level) sensor is reported that exploits n‐type monolayer molecular crystals (MMCs) with porous two‐dimensional structures. Thanks to monolayer crystal structure of NDI3HU‐DTYM2 (NDI) and controlled formation of porous structure, a world‐record detection limit of NH3 (0.1 ppb) was achieved. Moreover, the MMC‐OFETs also enabled direct detection of solid analytes of biological amine derivatives, such as dopamine at an extremely low concentration of 500 ppb. The remarkably improved sensing performances of MMC‐OFETs opens up the possibility of engineering OFETs for ultrasensitive (bio)chemical sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adipose tissue‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) from livestock are valuable resources for animal reproduction and veterinary therapeutics. Previous studies have shown that hypoxic conditions were beneficial in maintaining the physiological activities of ASCs. However, the effects of hypoxia on buffalo ASCs (bASCs) remain unclear. In this study, the effects of hypoxia on proliferation, stemness, and reprogramming into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) of bASCs were examined. The results showed that the hypoxic culture conditions (5% oxygen) enhanced the proliferation and colony formation of bASCs. The expression levels of proliferation‐related genes, and secretion of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were significantly enhanced in hypoxia. Hypoxic culture conditions activated hypoxia‐inducible factor‐1α (HIF‐1α), thereby contributing to the secretion of bFGF and VEGF, which in turn enhanced the expression of HIF‐1α and promoted the proliferation of bASCs. Furthermore, in hypoxic culture conditions, bASCs exhibited the main characteristics of mesenchymal stem cells, and the expression levels of the pluripotent markers OCT4, NANOG, C‐MYC, and the differentiation capacity of bASCs were significantly enhanced. Finally, bASCs were more efficiently and easily reprogrammed into iPSCs in hypoxic culture conditions and these iPSCs exhibited some characteristics of naïve pluripotent stem cells. These findings provide the theoretical guidance for elucidating the detailed mechanism of hypoxia on physiological activities of bASCs including proliferation, stemness maintenance, and reprogramming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many practical problems in the real world can be formulated as the non‐negative ℓ0 ‐minimisation problems, which seek the sparsest non‐negative signals to underdetermined linear equations. They have been widely applied in signal and image processing, machine learning, pattern recognition and computer vision. Unfortunately, this non‐negative ℓ0 ‐minimisation problem is non‐deterministic polynomial hard (NP‐hard) because of the discrete and discontinuous nature of the ℓ0 ‐norm. Inspired by the good performances of the fraction function in the authors' former work, in this paper, the authors replace the ℓ0 ‐norm with the non‐convex fraction function and study the minimisation problem of the fraction function in recovering the sparse non‐negative signal from an underdetermined linear equation. They discuss the equivalence between non‐negative ℓ0 ‐minimisation problem and non‐negative fraction function minimisation problem, and the equivalence between non‐negative fraction function minimisation problem and regularised non‐negative fraction function minimisation problem. It is proved that the optimal solution to the non‐negative ℓ0 ‐minimisation problem could be approximately obtained by solving their regularised non‐negative fraction function minimisation problem if some specific conditions are satisfied. Then, they propose a non‐negative iterative thresholding algorithm to solve their regularised non‐negative fraction function minimisation problem. At last, numerical experiments on some sparse non‐negative signal recovery problems are reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a period of mission time, only zero‐failure data can be obtained for high‐quality long‐life products. In the case of zero‐failure data reliability assessment, the point estimates and confidence interval estimates of distribution parameters cannot be obtained simultaneously by the current reliability assessment models, and the credibility of the assessment results may be reduced if they are obtained at the same time. A new model is proposed for consistency problem in this paper. In the proposed model, the point estimates of reliability can be obtained by the lifetime probability distribution derived from matching distribution curve method, while the confidence interval estimates of reliability can be obtained by using new samples generated from the lifetime probability distribution according to parameter bootstrap method. By analyzing the zero‐failure data of the torque motors after real operation, the results show that the new model not only meets the requirements of reliability assessment but also improves the accuracy of reliability interval estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective anticoagulation regimens are needed to reduce risks of thrombosis and bleeding in animal models of ventricular assist device to verify its hemocompatibility, biologic safety and reliability. This study is to develop a validated anticoagulation procedure for a sheep model to test the newly developed CH‐VAD. CH‐VAD models were established in six healthy sheep by constructing blood bypass of left ventricle → ventricular assist device → descending aorta. Heparin infusion was used during operation and in the prior 4 days to maintain activated clotting time 1.5–2.0 times the baseline. From the third day, proper dosage of warfarin was used orally to maintain international normalized ratio values within the range of 1.2–2.0. After termination, we examined whether there was thrombosis in the blood pump, grafts, and anastomotic stoma. Macroscopic and histopathologic examinations were performed in major organs to check for congestion and infarction. Bleeding complications were not found in any animals throughout the experiments. Activated clotting time values were 326 ± 33 s intraoperatively and 157 ± 28 s in the prior 4 days postoperatively. Activated partial thromboplastin time values increased slowly and reached the lower limit of the target range on the fourth day. Only in one of six cases was thrombus or fibrosis tissue found in the blood flow channel of the pump. Pathologic analysis showed no thrombosis, necrosis and microembolus in end‐stage organs. Under the anticoagulation regimens, coagulation system could be well controlled to avoid thrombosis and bleeding complications in sheep models for CH‐VAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Highly performance photodetector requires a wide range of responses of the incident photons and converts them to electrical signals efficiently. Here, a photodetector based on formamidinium lead halide perovskite quantum dots (e.g., FAPbBr3 QDs)–graphene hybrid, aiming to take the both advantages of the two constituents. The FAPbBr3 QD–graphene layer not only benefits from the high mobility and wide spectral absorption of the graphene material but also from the long charge carrier lifetime and low dark carrier concentration of the FAPbBr3 QDs. The photodetector based on FAPbBr3 QD–graphene hybrid exhibits a broad spectral photoresponse ranging from 405 to 980 nm. A photoresponsivity of 1.15 × 105AW−1 and an external quantum efficiency as high as 3.42 × 107% are obtained under an illumination power of 3 µW at 520 nm wavelength. In detail, a high responsivity is achieved in 405–538 nm, while a relatively low but fast response is observed in 538–980 nm. The photoelectric conversion mechanism of this hybrid photodetector is investigated in the view of built‐in electric field from the QD–graphene contact which improves the photoconductive gain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-N Mn18Cr18 alloy is mainly used as drill collar (DC) and retaining rings due to its non-magnetism and outstanding corrosion resistance. This work focuses on studying the dynamic recrystallization (DRX) behavior and thermal mechanical properties of high-N Mn18Cr18 alloy through isothermal single-pass compression tests on Gleeble-3500 simulator at the temperatures from 900-1200 °C and strain rates from 0.001-1 s−1. Flow stress curves combined with metallographic analysis indicate that DRX tends to occur at high deformation temperatures and low strain rates. The deformation activation energy of high-N Mn18Cr18 alloy is 331.775 kJ mol−1. Besides, fifth order polynomial fitting for determining critical strain and nonlinear curve fitting for extrapolating work hardening stress are presented. Based on kinetics equations of DRX and the dislocation density model, constitutive model is been set up to predict the flow stress behavior. Comparisons between the experimental and the predicted flow stress values indicate good forecast precision of the established model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lead halide perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) with bright luminescence and broad spectral tunability are good candidates as smart probes for bioimaging, but suffer from hydrolysis even when exposed to atmosphere moisture. In this paper, a strategy is demonstrated by embedding CsPbX3 (X = Cl, Br, I) NCs into microhemispheres (MHSs) of polystyrene matrix to prepare 'water-resistant' NCs@MHSs hybrids as multicolor multiplexed optical coding agents. First, a facile room-temperature solution self-assembly approach to highly luminescent colloidal CsPbX3 NCs is developed by injecting a stock solution of CsX⋅PbX2 in N, N-dimethylformamide into dichloromethane. Polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) is chosen as the capping ligand, which is physically adsorbed and wrapped on the surface of perovskite NCs to form a protective layer. The PVP protective layer not only leads to composition-tunable CsPbX3 NCs with high quantum yields and narrow emission linewidths of 12-34 nm but also acts as an interfacial layer, making perovskite NCs compatible with polystyrene polymers and facilitating the next step to embed CsPbX3 NCs into polymer MHSs. CsPbX3 NCs@MHSs are demonstrated as multicolor luminescence probes in live cells with high stability and nontoxicity. Using ten intensity levels and seven-color NCs@MHSs that show non-overlapping spectra, it will be possible to individually tag about ten million cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]